New $20-million design aims to inject new life, increase street traffic
Frances Bula
Sun
A sketch of a redesigned Granville Street from City of Vancouver. New plans include more city festivals.
The city’s most fought-over street is about to receive a $20-million makeover, complete with a redesigned civic plaza, light poles, custom-made street furniture, a star-studded walk of fame and new pavement design.
Granville Street has now moved past its three-decade fight over whether to bring cars back and is ready to bloom, says the director of a local business association.
“In the last five to 10 years, we’ve seen huge changes on the street,” said Charles Gauthier of the Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association. “This is just going to spur more of it on. And it’s amazing how the design has won a lot of approval.”
Gauthier said people are looking forward to seeing the street and plaza at Georgia and Granville used for more city festivals.
Granville Street used to be one the city’s premier streets, with a famous row of neon signs that advertised its theatres and restaurants. The street, which always had a seedier stretch at the south end filled with residential hotels and an open drug market, started to decline when underground malls began to suck businesses off the street in the 1970s. It was converted to a car-free mall in 1974 with wide, curving sidewalks. Some local businesses conducted a crusade for years to reverse that.
Granville has had more life to it in recent years — too much, some would say — with the city’s decision to create a Granville Entertainment Zone and concentrate bars and nightclubs in a three-block stretch. As well, a number of businesses have come in or re-located to be accessible from the street, such as Holt Renfrew, Winners and Future Shop.
But the street itself remained dilapidated.
After many rounds of reports and counter-reports, city staff and Granville businesses agreed on a redesign done by American street-design guru Allan Jacobs. That redesign has straightened out the sidewalks and converted them to “flex boulevards” that can be used for parking sometimes and pedestrians at other times.
The street furniture will be replaced for the first time since 1974 and the street will be lined with tubular lights.
Business owners are hoping that the Sears store’s blank wall can be used as a screen for video or image projections.
Gauthier said there are still some things that need to be worked out with the project.
The traffic should be slowed down, for one. “It doesn’t make sense to have buses and vehicles zooming down the street which is designed to attract pedestrian traffic,” said Gauthier.
As well, the city and downtown groups need to work together to program activities for the plaza.
Gauthier noted that council has unanimously approved a motion calling on the city to work with civic groups to enliven the new civic plaza using public art.
“That space won’t animate itself. It will take money,” he said.
One idea being proposed by his association is to collect old neon signs that once adorned Granville that have been stored by the city or are in private hands and have them remounted.
Council approved the $20-million plan this week. As with many construction projects recently, costs have skyrocketed. The city is hoping that TransLink will pay half the bill.
© The Vancouver Sun 2008
